MTV’s The War To Settle The Score

In 1984/85 the popularity of professional wrestling, in particular the WWF, was booming. The WWF was the first promotion to recognize that what they did was entertainment and not 100% sport. Visionary Vince McMahon (WWF’s CEO) knew that he needed to reach a younger demographic and thus was born the Rock n’ Wrestling connection, a partnership between the WWF and MTV. This partnership saw rock stars like Cyndi Lauper and pop culture celebrities like Mr. T get involved in the wrestling action. To kick off the Rock n’ Wrestling connection, MTV aired a one-hour special entitled The War To Settle The Score. This special featured a championship match between Hulk Hogan and Rowdy Roddy Piper – Live from Madison Square Garden.

The War To Settle The Score put the WWF into pop culture status and made Hulk Hogan a household name (if he wasn’t already). The special also was the precursor to the WWF’s premiere event known as WrestleMania. Definitely worth a watch to see all of the celebrity appearances including Danny DeVito, Joe Piscopo, Tina Turner, and even Andy Warhol.